His Unveiled Passion

Tessa smiled. "It's my treat. Come on, there's no need to be so formal with me."

After everything they'd been through with Lucas and Anne, Tessa and Jasmine had grown closer. By now, they were more than just colleagues-they were

friends.

Jasmine still looked a little uneasy. "But... I don't know if this is right."

"You're feeling down. As your friend, what's wrong with treating you to a nice meal to cheer you up?"

Jasmine pressed her lips together and was touched by Tessa's kindness. "Then... thank you, Ms. Yates."

"We're off the clock. Don't call me Ms. Yates-it sounds so distant. Just call me Tess or Tessa."

Jasmine smiled. "Alright, Tessa."

Tessa found a table by the window. "The view here's great. You can see the city lights."

Jasmine hummed in acknowledgment and sat across from her, still a little reserved.

"Order whatever you'd like." Tessa handed her the menu.

Jasmine waved her hands quickly. "You go ahead and order, Tessa. I'm fine with anything."

Noticing her shyness, Tessa nodded, took the menu back, and ordered a few signature barbecue dishes along with some vegetables.

The raw meat was soon brought out, and the waitstaff handled all the grilling.

Once the server had finished cooking and placed the meat onto their plates, Tessa politely thanked them before they left.

"Alright, tell me what happened," she prompted.

Now that they were alone and the mood was right, Jasmine opened up. "It's nothing too serious... I just got yelled at by Ms. Jennings today."

"Felicia?"

"Yeah."

Felicia Jennings was Jasmine's supervising lawyer. Though Tessa hadn't interacted with her much, she'd heard colleagues mention that Felicia had a notoriously unpredictable temperament. On good days, she could be gentle and kind, but when her mood soured, she had a habit of taking her frustration out on her assistants.

There had been a young man who started at the firm the same day as Jasmine. After being scolded twice by Felicia, he quit without a second thought. He simply packed up and walked away. Since he hadn't passed the bar exam yet, he was working as an assistant without needing to register as a trainee. Without the obligation to fulfill a year of internship, leaving had been easy.

Jasmine, however, was in a different position. Having passed the bar exam this past April, she needed to complete a full year of internship before she could leave.

In other words, she had to stay until next April.

"What did she yell at you for?" Tessa asked.

"There's this really difficult client in a divorce case. She's incredibly hard to communicate with."

Jasmine let out a weary sigh, her face troubled. "When I asked her for evidence, she ignored me. I tried calling her, but she wouldn't cooperate. Ms. Jennings blamed me for not being able to communicate properly.

"Then, when I drafted the complaint, the client wasn't satisfied. She kept insisting

we add a claim for emotional distress and demanded 300,000 dollars right off the

bat."

"The thing is, her case doesn't

qualify for emotional distress

damages at all. She's also asking for

such a high amount that would

increase her litigation fees. I

explained everything to her, but she

wouldn't listen. She just kept

insisting I include it. noveldrama

"I hadn't encountered a situation like this before, so I asked Ms. Jennings for advice. But she just snapped at me, saying I had no common sense, that I was long-winded and couldn't communicate properly."

"Later, she called the client herself and explained things the exact same way I had. But the client still wasn't satisfied. She kept making all kinds of unreasonable demands."

"I'd already warned Ms. Jennings that the client was difficult to deal with, but she wouldn't believe me. When she got frustrated, she took it out on me instead. She called me into her office and scolded me for ages. I tried to explain myself, but she said I was talking back to her and yelled at me even more."

As she spoke, her eyes welled up with tears again.

"Hey now, no more crying." Tessa handed her a few tissues. "Why don't you work

as my assistant instead? I'll talk to the supervisor and see if we can make it happen."

Jasmine's head shot up in surprise. "Really? Is that allowed?"

"Of course. You're registered as a trainee with the firm, not specifically under Ms. Jennings. It doesn't matter which supervising lawyer you work with-it's all the same."

Hearing this, Jasmine's smile blossomed. "Thank you so much, Tessa."

"Alright, no more tears. Cheer up, okay?"

"Okay!"

After finishing their meal, Tessa stood up to pay the bill. She had only taken a few steps when a man and woman approached from the opposite direction.

"Tessa?" The man's eyes crinkled slightly with a smile as he called out to her. His eyes gleamed with warmth.

Tessa looked over, and her gaze flickered with confusion. "And you are?"